100 Days from the start of 2024 hurricane season

Writer: Nikki Sheaks
Published: Updated:

The 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season is now just 100 days away. The season officially runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. However, storms can still develop before and after these dates.

“Early outlooks suggest that the upcoming season could be more active than normal because of record warm water temperatures in the tropical Atlantic where storms frequently track,” explained The Weather Authority Meteorologist Nikki Sheaks, “along with El Niño transitioning to La Niña.”

History has taught us that La Niña can lower wind shear in the Atlantic, allowing for greater activity. An average season has 14 named storms with seven of those becoming hurricanes, three of which becoming major (Category 3+) hurricanes.

The National Hurricane Center has six Atlantic storm name lists that they rotate through. This year’s list was last used in 2018.

Two prominent storms during the 2018 hurricane season have led to some changes to the list we will use this year. The names “Michael” and “Florence” will be replaced with the names “Milton” and “Francine.”

Storm names are retired when they cause significant damage and devastation. Hurricane Michael was a Category 5 that made landfall in the Florida Panhandle, which led to widespread destruction and about 50 deaths from direct and indirect causes.

Hurricane Florence was a large and slow-moving storm that impacted almost every community in the Carolinas. The storm brought more than 30 inches of rain in some spots and about 50 deaths.

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